12 Aug 1920 - Louisa Lawson died

#OnThisDay 12 August 1920 Louisa Lawson (mother of Henry Lawson) died. Louisa is remembered as a writer, poet, newspaper proprietor and suffragist in her own right.

By 1888, Louisa had started The Dawn, a fortnightly journal for women, that combined household hints, stories and fashion with political comment. The Dawn was an immediate success and continued to be printed until 1905.

From 1891 Louisa was also a member of the Womanhood Suffrage League of NSW and actively campaigned for the enfranchisement of women. This campaign was successful and from 1902 women could vote in NSW.

Extract from The Gallery

Sources: The Sydney Morning Herald. (1920). Mrs Louisa Lawson;  Radi, H. (1986). Australian Dictionary of Biography. Lawson, Louisa (1848-1920)